This invention relates generally to powered thread cleaners for industrial tubulars such as pipes and casings and more particularly relates to such thread cleaners employing brushes which scrub the threads.
Industrial pipes and casings often are connected, disconnected and reconnected during the lifetime of the pipes and casings. The connection takes the form of a pin end of a pipe being threaded into the box end of another pipe. During the lifetime of the pipes and casings, the threads of both the pin end and the box end often become corroded with foreign deposits which interface with subsequent use. For example, in the oil field pipes and casings from one installation are often subsequently reused in a later installation. And prior to the subsequent use, the threads oftentimes become contaminated with foreign deposits.
To ameliorate the task of cleaning the threads prior to subsequent usage, powered thread cleaners have been devised. One type of powered thread cleaner employs highly pressurized fluid directed against the threads to be cleaned. Another type of powered thread cleaner employs one or more stiff brushes which are scrubbed against the threads to be cleaned. This latter type also employs fluid sprayed onto the threads, but the fluid is not the primary cleaning mechanism. It serves merely to carry away the contaminants and foreign deposits loosened from the threads by the brushes.
Because of the fluid sprayed on the threads during the thread cleaning process, consideration has been given to minimizing leakage and spillage of the fluid from the thread cleaner. Output ports are provided in the housing of the thread cleaner to allow hose connections for conveying the used or spent fluid to an appropriate reservoir for filtering or other recycling of the fluid. While prior art thread cleaners have provided satisfactory solutions for conveying the spent fluid from the thread cleaner housing to the spent fluid reservoir, they have not maximized the efficiency of carrying spent fluid from the pipe threads to the exit port of the thread cleaner housing. Also, the prior art designs have not maximized the efficiency of applying the fluid to the threads of box ends or collars. Further, the prior art thread cleaner designs have not maximized the efficiency of providing new or replacement brushes with a minimum of economy, effort and time from the operator.